Things I saw / heard today:

1.       Due to Alabama winning their first game, Pastor was in a really good mood…I think it’s time to ask for more vacation days.

2.       The doughnuts were really small this morning…I will not stand for mediocrity in my Krispy Kreme.

3.       Matt and Charlie did the opening skit in Fusion…it was hilarious.

4.       This morning was a powerful message and the conclusion of our marriage series…It has been an awesome series and we have witnessed God doing some amazing things in many marriages.

5.       Next week starts our new series “Old School”…Pastor has been looking forward to this one for awhile…wonder if he will dress “old school?”  That would be cool!

6.       In the message, Pastor said “Men have a big S on their forehead”…yes we do.

7.       Bible says, “Adultery is a deep pit”…ever talked to someone who has fallen in it?  You will know how true that is.

8.       50% of men / 42% of women will have some type of affair-like relationship…wow…that is scary.

9.       Charlie closed the service for us this morning…thought he was going to start preaching.

10.   As always, our music rocked.

As many of you know by now, we are a staff that enjoys having fun.  We work hard, but we also play hard.  Below is a video of us playing hard.  

If you were at the Leadership Weekend, you’ve already seen this, but I bet you’ll watch it again.  

If you didn’t make it, I hope you enjoy this crazy video we put together to introduce our theme for the weekend, “What Drives You?”

If you happen to be someone who doesn’t go to church here at Southside, you’ll notice that there are more than a few inside jokes, but I still think you’ll enjoy it too!

Have a great weekend and enjoy this video!

If for some reason, you missed Leadership Weekend 2008, let me summarize the events of these two nights as quickly as I can.  On Friday night alone…

• Batman and Robin showed up
• We released our first ever mini-movie (I hope I’ll be able to put that online soon!)
• Our pastor challenged us in a major way
• The age-graded breakout sessions were a homerun
• Mark and Amber rocked the house with a parody of Bon Jovi’s “Dead or Alive”
• We treated our volunteers and their kids to free ice cream (we paid two ice cream trucks to wait outside at the end of the night and we let them get whatever they wanted)

Saturday was great too, as we played Mario Kart Wii, gave away a bunch of gift cards, and talked about our core values as a church.  Of course, the highlight of Saturday morning was seeing all of our amazing volunteers step up and sign their names on our giant poster, committing to do whatever it takes to make a difference for Jesus Christ in this community. I could say more, but I won’t.  I think the following video will validate that this past weekend was amazing.   

Today marks the one year anniversary of the Southside Blog. 

Hip, Hip Hooray! 

In the past year, Billy and I have written 187 posts (this is a little more than one post every two days, which we think is pretty good for us!)

Anyway, we’re having a blast, and we’d like to say thanks for reading our blog. 

Our goal this year is to create a little more conversation on our blog, and you can help us do that by commenting on the posts that you read.  This makes it a little more fun for us and a little more helpful to others. 

Thanks again for reading!

A few things I saw / heard this weekend at Southside: 

1.       This weekend was amazing.  The opening skit with Batman, Robin & Matt was very funny along with the NASCAR video we did as a staff …has to be up for an Oscar.

2.       Did we really play a Bon Jovi song and change the words?  O’ yea and it was crazy fun…you just had to be there…what a moment.

3.       One of the best phrases was stated by Matt to our senior adults…”thank you for taking one for the team” when it comes to the way church has changed over the years…they are a great example of commitment….wish my generation would get a clue about that.

4.       The servant leaders of Southside are incredible…honored to work alongside of them.

5.       Usually, when it rains most people stay home on Sunday…I guess no one got that memo….largest attendance for a “normal” Sunday that I’ve ever seen.

6.       I’m a stat freak, so here you go…the 10:30 service had a 93% capacity in the parking lot.

7.       Dr. Charles Lowery was unbelievable this morning and night…my wife and I have had the joy of hearing him speak many times and he keeps getting better.

8.       Heard a guy say after one of the services “I wish I would have heard this before I got a divorce.” - heartbreaking.

9.       Tonight we had some amazing music, including My Girl, I’ll Be There, and I Got You Babe…if you’re real quiet you can hear the rumors starting up…

10.   Did I mention the music this morning was “sick” – that’s another word for “really, really good.”

If you missed the announcements on Sunday, you missed the best “What’s Happening at Southside” video ever.

As most of you know, we don’t do traditional announcements on Sunday morning.  We try and take the three or four most important announcements and communicate them as creatively as we can through video. 

Sometimes the video is straightforward, often it is crazy, and some days, it’s just classic!

This past Sunday was one of the classic days.  Earlier in the week, Drew Cook and I penned the words to this jingle you’re about to hear, and Chris Clark, Josh Ray, and Mark Baltzglier made it come to life on the big screen. 

The end result is this video, and I think you’ll enjoy it!